Dramaturgy
If the act of creation is akin to giving birth, then an effective dramaturg plays the role of midwife.
Firstly, midwifery is an exercise in listening before all else. As a dramaturg, I respond to the narrative unfolding before me, but I take no ownership over it. Your play is your own; my goal is to usher it into the world in the fullness of what it is capable of being.
Secondly, midwives have a long history of questioning authority and protecting those on the margins. As far back as the Biblical Exodus, there is a story of midwives allowing those babies to be born who were slated to be killed. In contemporary theatre, we too have a responsibility to birth stories that have too long been silenced.
In my practice of dramaturgy, my goal is to help you tell your boldest stories. I will question theatrical convention and societal expectation alongside you, wondering aloud with you the best way to tell the story that is yours to tell.
My core values are:
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Authenticity. My job is to ensure that the story you're telling is not only accurately depicted, but a genuine extension of both your own voice and the characters that inhabit the world you've created.
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Creativity. My job is to ask questions, challenge your notions of what the 'right' way to tell your story is, and ultimately encourage an element of the unexpected. (Because at some level, that's what live theatre is all about, right?)
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Bravery. My job is to create an environment in which you're unafraid to tell your story in its fullness, whatever that might be, being that stories bravely told are how we change the world.
If you've read this far, we might be a match made in heaven. Giving birth and writing plays are both intended to happen in community, and I'd love the opportunity to be a part of your community as you embark upon bringing your story from your brain to the page to the stage.
As a freelance dramaturg, I am always willing to connect with playwrights and musical writers for an initial script consultation. This service can serve as either an incredible kickstart to a process or a means of evaluating a completed draft. Once you fill out the form below, I will reply and request the full script. The script consultation consists of both 1-2 pages of notes as I read as well as a virtual 1-hour meeting to discuss the script further.
And of course, this can be a one-time connection or the start of an ongoing relationship; the choice is yours. Every project has different needs, and I recognize that your story is personal and there's a lot that has to do with my 'fit' to what you need, in addition to my skill set.
All of that being said, never stop writing. I look forward to the possibility of getting to read what you're writing, and look forward even more to the possibility of journeying alongside you for that writing to come fully to life on stage.
The emotional labor of telling stories is not lost on me, and given the opportunity, I'm happy to shoulder a fraction of it for part of your journey.
Fill out the form below, and let's get to work. Let's make some magic (theatre is, in fact, magic) together!
“The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery.”
-Francis Bacon